


The Wedding

by Pheaca



Category: Dear Evan Hansen - Pasek & Paul/Levenson
Genre: I don't really have any extra tags rn whoops, M/M, Multi, i love my gays
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-06
Updated: 2018-10-06
Packaged: 2019-07-27 07:41:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16214528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pheaca/pseuds/Pheaca
Summary: Connor needs a date to his sister's wedding, so who would be better than his old friend Jared Kleinman?





	The Wedding

**Author's Note:**

> This is based off of one of my old RPs, although I'm definitely going to be taken a lot of liberties to make a stronger plot.
> 
> This is my first real writing in a while, so I hope it's good! It'll only probably be a few chapters long, and more of a warm-up for my future ideas I have!

_ TW - Mentioned past suicide attempt, swearing _

Connor had been surprised that he had ever made it out of high school, to be plain and simple. Against all odds set against him, and all of the bullshit he had been put through, he graduated, with most of his regards being directed to one boy in his class; Jared Kleinman.

Jared and his relationship throughout high school was... Complicated, to say the very least. They never showed their friendship at school, but behind closed doors they were much more than just friends. Jared was there to treat him like he mattered, and to comfort him whenever he had a bad day, even if Connor claimed he didn’t need the other to baby-sit him. It was nice, but that had been years ago.

To be exact, five years had passed since senior year. Connor was doing well for himself, having gotten himself a nice apartment just a few miles outside of the downtown area and ready to complete college with a degree in Psychology, a degree he had pursued to help kids who had been just like him.

Even with how everything seemed to be perfectly adequate at the current moment, life had begun to gain a dull edge once again. Jared, who had still been his closest friend to this very day, had cut contact with him months ago.

Well, to phrase it in a more truthful way, Connor had ghosted Jared.

There was…  A lot of things that had gone down that led to Connor ignoring every text and call from Jared. He was apprehensive even thinking of it to this day, cringing slightly at the memory of such a horrid event. He didn’t like to speak on it, and ignored it at all costs.

He had got out of the house occasionally, but ever since his last breakup he spent most of his time at home. He didn’t honestly see why he had much of a reason to leave, due to how he worked from home on depression hotlines. The most he typically did was grab some groceries, but he had only actually gone out to socialise a couple of times, and never with Jared. He didn’t dare speak to Jared for the past few months.

Jared wasn’t contacting him, after all, so he had no reason to contact the other.

That was until he checked his mailbox one day and found a letter from his sister. He had eyed the letter suspiciously for days, but refused to open it, afraid of what he might find. He didn’t exactly know _ why _ people would send letters in the current century, but he had suspected that it had only been for the worst occasions.

On a Saturday afternoon, though, he had finally worked up the courage to break the seal and read whatever had been inside. He raised an eyebrow at the design, a few white hearts on a black background, although once he had actually scanned through the contents of the letter, his eyebrows raised slightly.

His sister was getting married. That news was surprising on its own, since Zoe was one to always claim she would stay an independent woman until she was years out of her prime. What was even more surprising to him, though, was who she was marrying; Evan Hansen. The two had been together for almost six years, even since Connor’s senior year, but he had never imagined Evan to be husband material.

To be honest, the boy always put him off slightly, but they had started on the wrong foot and had never truly gotten in harmony with one another. He was just… A strange man, although it was mostly rooted in his anxious tics and his seemingly deathly fear of Connor. He didn’t blame Evan. In fact, he pitied the boy. He just never saw him ever getting married to Zoe as a possibility.

What caught his eye was that not only was there the typical RSVP information in there, but also a small slip of paper, looking as if it had been handwritten by Zoe herself. He carefully slide the paper out of the envelope, skimming over it.

_ Hey, I don’t know if you’re seeing anyone, but mom and dad would like to see you with someone! They’ve been worried ever since Zeke, and it would really put them at ease that you’re okay! _

_ \- Zoe _

He let out a sigh, setting the little note aside. He despise whenever he felt like he was getting pressure, but, then again, he found that he gave in rather easily, especially when it came to his sister.

The problem, though?

He didn’t have a date. He hadn’t date anyone in months. Besides, he wasn’t exactly in an ‘okay’ place, like his parents would want him to be. Far from it. He felt like he was a flaming dumpster fire, just as he always had been.

Even so, he knew that he had to find someone. Even if he wasn’t actually dating anyone, it was a nice facade for his parents to see. It would put them at ease, and he wouldn’t be bothered as much by them when it came to finding him a girl or guy to date.

Who would he ask?

Honestly, there was only one person he truly had in mind; Jared Kleinman. He was already dreading speaking to the boy. He could hear what the other was going to say. ‘Why the hell did you ignore me after what happened? Didn’t you understand how worried I was?’

He pushed all of his anxiety aside for a moment, reaching for his phone and searching for the other’s contact within his phone, not giving himself any time to think before tapping the call button, his stomach doing flips as he listened to the ringing. He half expected for Jared to just ignore the call, but, to his surprise, it seemed like it was picked up after only a ring or two.

“Look who’s finally trying to get back into contact with me,” Jared greeted, clearly pestered by Connor. Their conversations weren’t always like this—they actually had a half-decent relationship—but he knew this particular interaction would be rather rough.

“Hey, Jared,” Connor responded weakly, gulping slightly as he tapped his fingers against his kitchen counter, leaning against the marble.

“What sparked this oh-so rare occasion?  Drugs? Sex?” The boy on the other side of the call questioned in a dry manner, making Connor let out a long sigh. He just had to ignore the other’s annoyance with him for now if he wanted to get anywhere in the conversation.

“I got this invitation to my sister’s wedding, and I wanted to go. I know she absolutely hates me, but I want to make an effort to try and be a bit better, and she wanted me to bring a date, but I’m not really dating anyone,” he explained, having to take a pause as he collected himself to finally address the reason he had called. “I was wondering if you would want to go with me? As my plus one? These things are totally lame, but you seem like fun.”

“So, you’re using me to make yourself look better? Why should I have expected anything less from you,” he muttered, an almost self-deprecating chuckle escaping his lips. It was clear Connor hadn’t really thought through what he said. “You know what? Fine. Whatever. I’ve got to go anyway, and I can’t talk ‘Lana into going with with me, since it’s ‘unprofessional’ for the best man and maid of honor to go together.”

“I’m not using you, Jared. I just haven’t really talked to anyone for months, and I thought it might be nice to catch up,” he defended, playing with one of his rings on his free hand. This was a bad idea. He shouldn’t have called Jared. “Don’t make it seem like a chore to go with me. I already get enough of that. If I’m your last choice, then maybe I shouldn’t even bother.”

“Jesus Christ, there’s no need to fucking snap at me,” the boy on the other line mumbled, clearly a bit uncomfortable. “You weren’t exactly a choice months, so don’t get pissy with me now, alright?”

There was an uncomfortable pause from both sides, and Connor continued to just stare down at his rings, finding the silence to be almost more unbearable than Jared scolding him. At least when Jared spoke, Connor had an idea of what Jared was thinking. Now, he was completely lost. Although, Jared eventually broke the tension by continuing to berate Connor.

“Look, if you weren’t fucking avoiding me for months, you wouldn’t be last, but you’re contacting me a week before the wedding and you think you can just waltz in and…”  There was another few moments where no one said anything, until finally Jared let out a sigh and continued. “Whatever. Let’s just drop it.

“You know, you could have at least told me you were alright,” Jared uttered, this time much softer and a bit more hesitate than his other comments. There was clearly a bit of hurt in Jared’s voice. It was rare he ever truly expressed anything like that. It made guilt wash over Connor. Jared had a point; he could have let the other know he was fine, but he was so embarrassed. He didn’t want to be seen as weak, but Jared knew it better than most that he wasn’t as strong as he wanted everyone to see him as.

“Yeah, I know, it’s just…”  He trailed off, looking for the right words, chewing on the inside of his lip. Jared was beginning to back him into a corner, and Jared never did well in situations like that. “I just didn’t want you to see me like that. I was embarrassed about how you saw me the last time.”

Last time. The night that had forced him into solitude for months. His bathroom had been in chaos, pills scattered across the tile. He didn’t have nearly as bad depressive states as high school, but something that day had truly struck him, and he couldn’t ignore it. If Jared hadn’t found him, he wouldn’t have been here today. Part of him was thankful for Jared finding him, but, at the same time, he really wished it wasn’t Jared who found him. He hated that Jared had to see that; he didn’t deserve that. Then again, no one really did.

“Well, would you have rather been embarrassed or leave me believing you were in a casket six feet underground?”  Jared questioned, continuing to further push Connor into the corner that his friend had been forcing him into.

“If I was six feet under, then at least I wouldn’t have to be embarrassed,” he weakly shot back. He didn’t have a defense, honestly. He wasn’t one to admit that he was wrong often, but now more than after he was definitely in some sort of wrong.

“At least getting over your embarrassment and calling me wouldn’t have made me think you might have not been alive,” Jared retorted, but the fierceness that had once been so clear in his voice was gone. There was a sense of regret in everything he uttered. Maybe he thought he had gone too far. Connor could never quite tell, but he was going to turn the tables a bit.

“Yeah, I should have called, but you could’ve came to my house to check on me,” Connor pointed out, his voice small.

“God, I know, I know,” he began quietly, reflecting on his own mistakes in the situation. “I just felt you would’ve probably screamed at me to leave if you were alive, and if you weren’t…  It didn’t seem worth it.”

“I wouldn’t have screamed at you if you came to see me,” He wasn’t actually sure if that would have been the case. No one had bothered to visit him in person. Not even his own mother had worked up the effort to come to his apartment. It definitely stung; it made him feel that he was a lost cause.

“Can we just…  Meet up somewhere at some point?”  Jared asked, changing the subject away from his own failings. “How about the hipster-y coffee place?”

“I would love to see you,” he admitted, cringing slightly at the use of the word ‘love’. That wasn’t exactly the right term. “Do you want to meet up today? I mean, only if you have time, or whatever.”

“Uh…  Yeah,” Jared uttered after a few moments, a couple of clicks at a keyboard. “I should be open today. Just—give me some time to finish my work, and I’ll meet you there at about one.”

“Sounds great,” he confirmed, a slight smile spreading across his face. “Make sure you look good. I can’t let my reputation be shattered because I’m going on a coffee date with a nerd.”

Date. Was that the right term?  He wasn’t quite sure, but he threw it out there anyway.

“I always look good, so it shouldn’t be a problem,” Jared remarked, his snarky attitude clearly building back up. Connor simply rolled his eyes, holding back a chuckle.

“Make sure you shower; that apartment and you probably smell like shit with how long you’ve been cooped up in there,” the boy added, making Connor let out another sigh. There was Jared’s impulsive comments that he could never hold back. “See you later, buddy.”

“See ya,” Connor closed, bringing his phone away from his ear, glancing down to see Jared had already ended the call. Even with how much of a jerk Jared had been on call, Connor couldn’t help but grin to himself. He was finally going to see Jared again.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not going to promise that I'll get the second chapter out rather fast, but I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and if you liked it, you can follow me at @pheaca-writes or @dear-jaredkleinman on Tumblr, although I'm more active on the latter one!


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